Car construction



Sept.- 27, 1927.

A. CHRISTIANSON CAR cous'raucnou Filed July 6, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 1 INVENTOR WW W Sept. 27.19.27.

A. cHRlsTlANsoN cm CONSTRU-CTION 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July.6, 1925 FIG. 3

INVENTOR v 1 643,836 S 1927' A. CHRISTIANSON I 7 CAR CONSTRUCTION Filed July 6, 1925 3 sheets sheet 3 N N N" NR I N I III III 1/ m f k) l .0 Q u. I c I g E; v VIII/1111111111! l r I I Y Z N L I E! 1: i INVENTOR :5 ii

Patented Sept. 27, 1927.

, 1,6435% mum DJFFiIiCE.

ANDREW *cHRrsr-mnso'm cr scrum, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR 'ro STANDARD s'rnnr can centenary, --orrrrfrsnnnen, 'rnmqsYLvAN-In, .A oonronn'rxon or PENNSYLVANIA.

, CAR CONSTRUCTION.

' a plication iled-July *6, i925. -Seria1 so. 41, 511.

My invention relates to car construction, and has particular reference to :the nsiderframe structure of railway cars.

My invention has for its obieot the provision of :an improved form of draft sill :structure which is particularly suitable for hop- ;per cars, in :that it will require -a minimum amount of space lengthwise of the car, thus leaving greater door opening room, while at the same time standard draft :gear structure can :be "employed connection therewith.

Another object of my invention is to provide adra ft sill of such "formtlrat the trucks may be positioned quite close to the ends of the cars, thus permitting door openings of greater dimensions t ha-n possible in the-older types I of cars, and :avoiding obstruction of the end hopper sheets bythe trucks.

I l rnother objcc t-of *my invention is to pro vide an improved means for transmitting strains from the draft sil l structure to the side sillsof the car.

A still further object of my invention is to simplify and improve generally the struc ture of railway cars.

One form which my invention may take is shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a view, partially in plan and partially in section (the lower half being on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2), of a portion of a car equipped with my invention; Fig. 2 is a Vertical sectional view of the structure of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of the draft sill structure; Fig. 4 i a view taken substantially on the line 4.& of Fig.

2, and Fig. 5 is a view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2. 7

My device is shown as applied to a steel car of the hopper type which has side sheets 6, hopper sheets 7 and drop doors 8, all of which may be of substantially any desired form.

For the purpose of clearness I have shown one of the trucks merely schematically, as

indicated by the wheels9. The other parts of the truck are omitted so that they will not unnecessarily complicate the drawing.

The car body is provided with end sills 10 which extend from the corners of the car to points at either side of the draft sill structure so as to permit insertion of the draft gear apparatus between the inner ends of these sills. The draft sill consists of a casting 11 which has wing portions 12 at its forward end that are riveted to the end sill members 10 and to diagonal struts 1-3 which assist intra'nsmitting strains from the draft sill casting 11 to the side sills 1d of the car. Frloor plates 15 overlie and are'riveted to the casting .11 and 5150 the diagonal struts 13 and iongitudinal struts 16, as indicated :at 17, 1'8 and 19, "the casting 11 being provided with :fiange portions its rear end through which'the riyets '17 extend.

A vertical supporting wall 221 is provided 1 for the hopper sheet 51, as shown more clearly in Fig. 2. This wall comprises plates and angles rivetedtogc'therin any suitable manner for securing the proper degree of strength. At its lower end the wall 21 is provided-with itwo angles :22 that form in :efi'ecta body bolster or sill, :since they extend across the end'of the car and are connected to the center sil l 11 and side sills 1 The angles 22 are riveted to arms or flanges 23 of the casting 11 as shown more clearly in Figs. 1 and i2.

It will thus be seen that the draft sill Boasting :11 has rigid-connection with the side sills 14 of the car, through diagonal struts 13, plates 15 and the end wall structure 21. This arrangement gives a very rigid structure, and is particularly advantageous in ore cars which are subjected to rough usage and move over uneven tracks, which causes weaving or bending strains.

The casting further serves as a support for the door-operating mechanism which need not be described in detail but is shown more clearly in Figs. 2 and 4t and consists of links 25 and 26 by means of which the doors are suspended from the car body, together with the lifting mechanism. The inner edges of the doors are connected to lifting links 27 that are in turn connected to links 28 which have pivotal connection with a crank 29 that is rotated by an operating shaft 30, in a manner well known in the art, to raise and lower the inner edgesof the doors. The casting 11 provides bearings for the shafts 30 and 31, the shaft 31 carrying a gear wheel 32 which meshes with the gear wheel 33 on the shaft 30. A sprocket wheel 34 is connected to the shaft 31 and dicated diagrammatically in Fig. 3.- Transversely disposed openings are also provided, for the reception of a bolt 37 that holds a locking bar 38 in position and thereby provides a support for the coupler shank when the draft rigging is in position. This feature is described and claimed in my Patent No. 1,603,661, issued October 19, 1926.

The casting 11 is also provided with stops 39 for limiting forward movement of the front follower block (not shown) when the draft rigging is in place in the casting 11. This follower may be inserted through an opening 39 or in any other suitable manner. The coupler shank 36 may be connected by a key 39 (Fig. 2) to the yoke.

The casting 11. is provided with a downwardly extending portion 10 that serves as a center plate and is provided with an opening for the king or center pin, this member 10 being adapted to seat upon a truck bolster (not shown).

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination with a railway car, provided with an end sheet that is inclined downwardly and backwardly from one end of the car, of draft sill structure extending backwardly from the said end of the car and having a longitudinal recess for the reception of a coupler shank, and a center plate device on the underside of-said sill structure, beneath the space occupied. by said shank.

2. T he combination with a railway car, of

draft sill structure atone end thereof that is longitudinally recessed for the reception of a coupler shank and a center plate device secured to the underside of said sill structure, at a point beneath'the space occupied by said coupler shank.

8. The combination with a railway car provided with an end sheet that is inclined downwardly and backwardly from one end of the car, of draft sill structure extending backwardly from a point beneath the forward edge of said sheet to a point adjacent to the lower edge thereof, the said sill structure being longitudinally recessed, a coupler shank disposed within said recess, and a center plate device on the underside of said sill structure, beneath the space occupied by the said shank.

4. The combination with a railway car provided with an end sheet that is inclined downwardly and backwardly from one end of the car, of a transversely extending body bolster disposed beneath and supporting the mid portion of said sheet, draft sill structure beneath said bolster, a coupler shank within said draft sill structure, and extend ing rearwardly past the lower side, of said bolster, and a center plate device secured to the underside of the draft sill at a point beneath the space occupied by said shank.

In testimony whereof I, the said ANDREW OHRISTIANSON, have hereuntoset my hand.

ANDREW GHRISTIANSON. 

